Sport...

Taking some stock of where we're at in the 2016 Football Season.

AFL:

• Think that there's now 10 teams that can make the eight. I'm willing to draw a line through everyone from the Gold Coast down.  
• Happy with how the Swans have been going. Playing a bogey team this weekend (Richmond), but the team is going along nicely. Heeney and Lapley have been impressive, and its good to see Franklin back out there 
• Great to see how well Melbourne has been going this year.
• Ditto with GWS - a couple of big wins has everyone excited, while I suspect they will play finals, I'm not yet convinced.

Rugby League:

• Top four looks fairly settled, and to be honest I don't think any one else has the consistency to win the Premiership.  I'd be putting Brisbane as slight favourites over the Cowboys, with the Sharks as the dark-horse.  The Sharks wins against Brisbane and Penrith were impressive. 
• Disappointed in the result of the test, but not the Kiwi's performance. 
• The Kiwi-Ferns had an impressive win against the Jillaroos. It was a good game to watch. 

Super Rugby:

• The NZ teams have been doing well, I'm interested to see the All Blacks team to play Wales given the retirements after last year's World Cup.  
• The Hurricanes have gone back to their old inconsistent ways this year.  Though they might just sneak into the finals, but not sure they deserve too. 

2015 - Favourite NZ Sporting moment

I may have posted this in one of my sports posts, but the Halberg Awards are coming up, and there is a viewers choice for the sporting moments of the year. View the full list here. Here's my standouts. 

(1)    The Football Ferns win against Brazil.

(2)    Grant Elliot’s innings against South Africa, and his sportsmanship after it, in the World Cup Semi Final     

(3)    The Kiwi’s winning the ANZAC Test against Australia in Rugby League – the first time in 17 years.

2015 Cricinfo Awards

One of the highlights each year is reading the nominations for the best individual performances in the different formats of Cricket for the previous year. I've picked my favourite from each category. Read the full list of nominees here:

Test Cricket:

Test Batting performance of the year

Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh) 206

Easy to pick Ross Taylor for his 290 against Australia in Perth. Ross Taylor broke one of Cricket's oldest records (The highest score by any visiting batsman in Australia, Tip Fosters made 287 in 1903/1904), and given his form going in to the Perth test it took everyone by surprise. But I'll pick Iqbal's 206 - the highest score for Bangladesh. He shared in a 312 run stand for the first wicket in Bangladesh's second innings (the highest opening stand in the third or fourth innings in test history), saving the test match.

Test Bowling performance of the Year

Stuart Broad (England) 8/15

One of the more perfect bowling performances I can remember. Australia's full innings lasted 114 balls. I still scarcely believe this scorecard, given it was on the opening morning of the fourth Ashes test with so much at stake.

One Day Internationals:

ODI Batting

Mahmudullah (Bangladesh), 128* 

One of two centuries Mahmudullah made during the World Cup and this innings drove Bangladesh to a competitive total, which NZ after a few anxious moments chased down.

Hon Mention Elliot's 84* in the World Cup semi final, not only for the innings, but for one of the moments of the World Cup - the photo of Elliot reaching out to Dale Steyn will live long in the memory. 

ODI Bowling

Mitchell Starc (Aus) 6/28

Starc's spell almost won the game for Australia, after a Trent Boult led New Zealand had bowled Australia out for 151.

Hon mention: Tim Southee (NZ), 7/33 

Best bowling figures for a NZ in ODI cricket, and the best bowling figures at the 2015 World Cup.

T20 Internationals

T20 Batting

JP Duminy 68* (South Africa) 

Others have made higher scores, but he guided South Africa who at one stage needed 107 off 61 balls.

Hon mention: Gayle's 90 which kickstarted the West Indies successful chase of 231 (the highest score made batting second in any T20).

T20 Bowling

Harder to judge what makes a good performance in T20, dot balls are as important as wickets. Interesting looking at the best bowling figures for 2015, all but four are all from players in Associate teams.

I'll make it easy and pick Wiesse's 5/23.

Captain of the year:

Mashrafe Mortaza (Bangladesh) who inspired the Bangladeshi team to one of their best years in international Cricket.

Hon Mention, Brendan McCullum, for both the style of cricket he's inspired NZ to play, and the results through the year. (Tests 4-3, 1 draw, ODI 18-5, 1 no result)

Disappointing that there's no Female cricket of the year on CricInfo, but there will be next year :)  I would give it to either Elysse Perry or Meg Lanning, probably the two most consistent women cricketers across all formats last year. Though Jess Johanson's performance in the Ashes would put her up there too.

2015 In review - books

I haven't read as many books this year as I was intending too, but thought I would write about the books I did manage to read through during 2015.

Searching for Sunday - Rachel Held Evans
Rachel’s journey with the church – even in Australia context I find it easy to relate to the stories she tells. Love the authenticity and honesty she writes with. Definitely pick up the album by Amanda Opelt (Seven Songs), it’s a perfect accompaniment.

Out of Sorts - Sarah Bessey
Probably my favourite book for 2015. I can totally relate to the journey Sarah has been on. The chapters on the practice of lament, and Christian community are the best thing about the book. Sarah’s writing style is so conversational as well making the book easily accessible.

As an aside the song best capturing a message I took from Bessey and Held Evans books is Jars of Clay’s Shelter, from the album of the same name.

In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live (In the shelter) 

In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live (You will never walk alone) 

In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live (In Your arms are all around us) 

In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live (In Your arms are all around us)

If there is any peace, if there is any hope 

We must all believe, our lives are not our own 

We all belong God has given us each other 

And we will never walk alone

Class act - Maxine McKew

McKew looks at the education system, and what some schools are doing right.

This Changes Everything - Naomi Klein
On the changes our world needs to make to adjust to the changes in our environment. A confronting read, and I find it hard to argue with its key message. Our world is changing, our environment is changing, and we need to adjust to these changes.

Keating - Kerry O'Brien
The book is a transcript of Kerry O’Brien’s interview with former Prime Minister Paul Keating. I was a fan of Keating in the 90s, and vividly remember the night he was voted out. Keating is one of a few politicians with a vision of what Australia could become. It was intriguing reading his reflections, both on his time in politics and the current state of Australian politics. Sadly, we don’t have any leaders like him in our current Parliament, who are more interested in shaping opinion than following opinion polls.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Richard Flanagan
The only novel on the list, I quite liked Flanagan’s writing style and the story he was telling.

A Thousand Wells - Jena-Lee Nardella
Tells the story of how the charity Blood Water was formed, as well as an autobiography of one of its founders Jena Lee.

In progress

• A Path Appears – Nick Kristof and Cheryl Wu Dunn, so far, the book is a powerful reminder that however dark this world seems to be, there are people working to make a difference, and people who have inspired others to seek to bring change to the world. The world changes one person at a time, and we don’t know how powerfully we can shape the lives of those around us.  
• Chasing Shadows - Tim Lane. Peter Roebuck is one for my favourite Cricket writers. Roebuck had a sense of the game, understood its spirit, its characters, and had a vision for its future. I loved listening to him on ABC Radio. Along with Benuad he was one of the voices of summer. So I’m interested in reading the book to find out more about him and his life.

2015 in review .. Sport.

So, it has been a busy year in sport. For me the highlight of the year would be the All Blacks becoming the first team to win two consecutive Rugby World Cups.  Other contenders:

• NZ performance at the Cricket World Cup. (no they didn't win, but how the game is played matters more than results to me). 
• The start of the Women's Big Bash League
• The Matlida's performance at the World Cup in Canada. Australia's first Quarter-Finalist at the Football World Cup. The US performance against Japan in the Final, was virtually flawless
• Yep, I wanted the Silverferns to win, but the Diamond's achievement in winning the Netball World Cup. (The last game of the Constellation Cup was also super impressive, were NZ beat the Diamonds by 12 goals, falling just short of the 14 they needed to win the cup.
• Michelle Payne - not really a fan of Horse-racing, but her achievement to get the ride, and win the cup, in a male dominated industry was very impressive
• The Socceroos winning the Asian Cup. 
• The Highlanders winning the SuperXV tournament. Yes, I do support the Hurricanes, but I've always had a soft spot for the Highlanders.
• Thurston's field goal to win the NRL Grand-Final
• Djokovic and Serena Williams were possible the sports-stars of the year. Both won three out of the four majors. 

The less said about the AFL season the better - it was really soured by treatment of Adam Goodes, and another lack-lustre Grand Final. 

Test Cricket team of the year:
Now I'll turn my attention to my test team of the year. Yep, there's still two tests to go (Australia v West Indies & South Africa v England), but don't think that any performance would change my team.

1. Daivd Warner (Australia)
2. Alistair Cook (England)
3. Kane Williamson (New Zealand), capt.
4. Steven Smith (Australia)
5. Younis Khan (Pakistan)
6. Virat Kohli (India)
7. Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), (Pakistan)
8. Stuart Broad (England)
9. R. Ashwin (India)
10. Joshua Hazlewood (Australia)
11. Mitchell Starc (Australia)
12. Yasir Shah (Pakistan)

Captain, hard choice - have to admit, not impressed with any current/former captains, Steven Smith is too conservative for me, so maybe I'd give it to Kane Williamson. Conversely found it hard to pick the middle-order (5-6) and wicketkeeper.

The easiest picks: Williamson (the rankings don't lie, the best batsman in the World this year, 1172 runs at 90.15), Ashwin (best performing bowler this year, 62 wickets at 17.2), Warner and Hazlewood. Taylor's 290 against Australia in Perth, and Stuart Broad, whose 8/15 v Australia was the bowling performance of the year.

In ODI Cricket, hard to go past AB de Villiers 44-ball 149 as the ODI innings of the year, and Mitchell Starc's 6/28 (against NZ) as the bowling performance of the year.

Football finals.

Now that September's here, its time for the Football finals. In our Rugby League we've got

• Roosters v Storm
• Brisbane v North Queensland
• Bulldogs v St George
• Cronulla v South Sydney

To be honest, one of the Roosters, Brisbane and North Queensland will be Premier's this year. Hoping for the Cowboys, but we'll see. All three are way above the pack in terms of the numbers (hard to see a dark horse).

The AFL..

Looking at the fixtures below - its got the makings of one of the all-time great Final-Series.

• West Coast v Hawthorn
• Fremantle v Sydney
• North Melbourne v Richmond
• Western Bulldogs v Adelaide. 

This year has the making of a time from outside the top four winning with Richmond Adelaide and North Melbourne all having beaten the teams in the top four. But we'll see if the finals experience counts for something. If Sydney don't win, I'll be cheering for Fremantle or Adelaide. 

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As an aside, was disappointed with Steve Smith in the last One Day international for not recalling Stokes. It wasn't a good look for the game (or Smith). Read more here.

U2 - Ten Songs

Building from my post about REM and Jars of Clay. I thought it only natural to post my 10 songs from U2. A little caveat, I'm not saying these are the best U2 songs, simply my favourites, at the moment. I've kind of cheated, including a track which combines Bad and Where the Streets Have No Name

1. A Day without me [Boy]

Young, earnest, going to take on the world.  That's how the early U2 sounds, and this track is a classic example. 

2. Drowning man [War]

Intensely personal song, addressed to Adam when he was going through a tough time, and has beautiful images of friendship, ending with quotes from Isaiah 40:31. 

3. The Ground Beneath Her Feet [All That You Can't Leave Behind]

One of the more romantic songs Bono has written. The song was co-written with Salman Rushdie. Salman Rushdie wrote a book with the same name worth checking out. 

4. Stay (Faraway, So Close!) [Zooropa]

Just love the video clip for this one, and not to mention the powerful lyric 

'And if you look, you look through me And when you talk, you talk at me And when I touch you, you don't feel a thing'

5. Staring at the Sun [Pop], [this version, Popheart]

Pop is one of my favourite U2 songs, and I really love how they reinvented the song as an acoustic number during their PopMart tour.Highlights the beautiful harmonies between the voices of Bono and The Edge. 

6. Please [Pop], [this version popheart]

I loved the album version of the song, but it gained a life of its own when played on stage, first on the PopMart tour, then when Bono and the Edge played it acoustically on the third leg of the Elevation tour.  

7. Love is Blindness [Achtung Baby] 
Quite possibly my favourite U2 song, and at the moment, the version from London in 1992 (May31). Love how Bono adds two of Yeats poems to the end of the song (September 1913; and Aedh Wishes For The Cloths Of Heaven). 

8. One [Achtung Baby], [this version, Miss Sarajevo, single] 

Easily my favourite version of this song. I love the depth the orchestra adds to the song. Along with the harmonies of Bono and The Edge.

9. Bad/Where the Streets have no name [The Unforgettable Fire, The Joshua Tree], [this version, Electrical Storm single]

Almost perfection. Two beaut songs melded into one, with a snippet of 40 the connection. Love how Bono quotes Psalm 116 over the introduction of Where the Streets Have No Name. Both songs are really powerful on their own - I get chills when ever I hear the introduction to 'Bad, but the two songs together is magical.  

10. Kite [All that You Can't Leave Behind], [this version, Window in the Skies single]

Picked this, because it was one of the highlights of the Vertigo tour, This version was recorded on my birthday, at the concert I went to in Sydney. 

Just love these lyrics...

'Who's to say where the wind will take youWho's to know what it is will break youI don't know which way the wind will blowWho's to know if the time has come aroundI don't wanna see you cryI know this is not goodbye'

U2 - Innocence & Experience 2015

In case you missed it, U2 are about half-way through the first leg of their Innocence and Experience tour. One of the striking things is how much technology has changed. Fans (and the Band), are streaming every concert via periscope or meerkat. Now you are able to experience the show from your computer on the other side of the world. It's a long way for waiting for an email with the setlist like during the PopMart tour.

So far, the band is in brilliant form, not only have the songs translated beautifully to the stage, the first act, is beautifully constructed play about innocence broken, from the sounds that inspired the band, to their friends, family, and country.

The most powerful segment of the show is the transition from Sunday Bloody Sunday-Raised by Wolves-Until the End of the World. Where you feel you living through the bombing in Dublin. I can only imagine would it would sound like at the arena.  

I can't complain about the set-lists. There is certainly enough variety to make you come back each night, and a few surprises. Ordinary Love and Lucifer's Hands were the most surprising.

I feel that there will be a few more surprises in their eight night stint in New York.  (A 'reversed' show like Osaka in 1989 would be awesome!)

The downside is, I have a suspicion that this tour will be like the Elevation tour and not come down-under.  I truly hope I'm wrong, because if it sounds and looks this good watching online...

Les Miserables - Sydney

It's no secret that Les Miserables is one of my favourite musicals. It beautifully tells a powerful story about us all, or capacities, and our capacity for love and mercy. I've lost count of the times I've listened to the CDs, watched the videos, and seen the stage production (and film).

I was delighted to read that Cameron Macintosh was putting on the his new production in Sydney, so I would get the chance to see it. I have regularly told people that the best production of Les Mis I saw was an amateur production in Wollongong, in the 1990s. There was something about the performances that night which connected and resonated with me. I'll never forget one of the girls in my year (Lisa O'Connell) playing the role of Epoinine in one production, she was amazing.

I got goose bumps when the first notes of the overture were played, and was just riveted through the whole show. One of the highlights were the drawings which were incorporated into the show as backdrops.

Simon Gleeson and Hayden Tee were great as Val Jean and Javert respectively - I loved the orchestrations for 'The Confrontation', and the chemistry between them, Hayden nailed 'Stars' and I loved Simon's performance of 'What have I Done'.

Patrice Tipoki's (Fantine) 'I Dreamed a Dream' was beautiful. The Thenardiers (Trevor Ashley & Lara Mulcahy) added the 'lightness' to the show, as needed.

The highlight for me was Kerrie-Anne Greenland who plays Epoinine. She's always the character in the show that I identified with the most. I just loved the performances of 'On My Own' and 'A Little Fall of Rain' (which usually brings tears). The other moment which really stood out is the song 'Drink with Me' and Grantaire's lines:

'Drink with me to days gone by / Can it be you fear to die? / Will the world remember you When you fall? / Could it be your death means nothing at all? Is your life just one more lie?'.

Would love the cast singing 'Do You Hear the People Sing?' again after they take their bows.

I always have a hard time comparing performers and performances, as each and every time the story strikes me differently, and I notice different things. I don't think I can recommend seeing the musical highly enough, and the cast going to Brisbane after the Sydney season finishes.

Footy recap

AFL
So, yes were only five weeks in to the season...   but there's a few surprises in the top eight at the moment, suspect a few positional changes, and a couple of teams will drop out but after five rounds the top eight are:

• Fremantle
• Collingwood
• Western Bulldogs
• Hawthorn
• West Coast
• Sydney
• Adelaide
• GWS. 

Have been surprised with the form of the Bulldogs or Eagles as they weren't my list for the eight, but they've both impressive to watch so far this year, will be interesting to see how long they kept their form up.

The Swans were let down with both the decision-making and execution, they had the opportunities to win the game (61 inside 50s). Mick Malthouse was all class in the press conference following the Blue's loss on Friday. He's a great steward of the game.

SuperRugby
Impressed with the Hurricanes continuing their dominance over the Crusaders and keeping top spot on the ladder. Hoping for a Waratahs-Hurricanes, though at this stage, it'd be in Wellington...

A-League:
Today was a bit of a dampener on the Phoenix's seasons. A few weeks ago, they were potential winners of the minor premiership but let it slip.

Next week sees the Victory take on City in a Melbourne derby and Sydney tackle Adelaide for a place in the final..

NRL
The League tests were played on Sunday after being washed out on Friday. The Junior Kiwi's lost by two yesterday, and the women's team were outclassed 22-14.  The Men's team won the ANZAC test for the first time since 1998, and the first time they've won three in a row against Australia since 1952/53. Great to see the women's test played before the men's game.

The break to the season for the test is an interesting idea..  though I'd like a two week break for the State of Origin..  playing the games on Friday, Wednesday then Sunday.Would also be great to have a series for the women's teams, or a one-off match. The players who aren't involved in the State of Origin series could be invited to play in a knockout event held in a rotating regional centre. This would certainly help build the game in these areas. I'd love to see the NRL explore a knockout 'Cup' type competition using teams from each local area group, and the Toyota Cup teams from the NRL like the current football cup competition.  Not sure if that'd work.

World Cup Countdown...
- less than 50 days to the Women's Football World Cup.
- less than 100 days to the Netball World Cup.
- less than 150 days to the Rugby World Cup.

Australia received the draw for their World Cup recently. Perhaps a logistical nightmare more than anything else, as fans work out how they can get to the games, but we'll see.

Footy recap...

AFL
Two games of major ebbs and flows with Hawhorn coming back from 50 plus points down to lose by eight. The Swans trailed by 48 before losing by 14. Would have been an 'injustice' if the Swans & Hawks got up...

Four games in, here's a few notes:
With the Suns losing their four games against St Kilda, Geelong, GWS and Melbourne, to start the season, you feel they need a major turn around to say they will make the eight.  The Giants on the other hand have shown more promise but I'm not including them in my top eight yet.

Adelaide are the surprise packets so far, win their game today, and they will join Fremantle as the undefeated teams.

Geelong, will make the eight, but they are on their way down, their two losses have been against Fremantle and Hawthorn (who I still think will finish in the top four), so now disgrace.  Port Adelaide are where you'd expect them to be 2-2.

Shouldn't read to much into things mind you, I think the last time Sydney won the competition they were 1-3 or 1-4.

League
A surprise leader in Brisbane, but hard to not be impressed by how they've started the season.  Surprised with Souths at the moment (but they do have to adjust to being the hunted, rather than hunter...)

After three games, the Cowboys were 0-3, and now they're sitting fourth, so its dangerous to write teams off....

The Warriors haven't adjusted to life without Tomkins and do seem a little one-dimensional...  though they've had a few close losses which could have gone either way, still think they will scrap into the eight.

Test match...
The Kiwi's will compete well on Friday, but I just don't see them winning. Their record in the mid season test is not so good.

Super Rugby
The Waratahs are building some momentum now, and building their title defense.  The Hurricanes were back in the winners list. They've got a few tough games to come..  but the joy of sport is that you can be optimistic about how your team will go. :)

Weekend footy..

The round feels like it went on and on..   Some quick thoughts,

AFL
I know its round one, but gee Hawthorn look ominous this year. There's just an apparent chemistry about the team in how they are playing with and for each other.

Sydney's performance was what you expect from them in round one, a little below par, but then again, the last quarter was something special.

Was happy to see the Demon's win, and the wins from Richmond, Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs should give their fans an optimistic vibe about what the season will bring.

NRL
The biggest talking point from the League round over the weekend was around the treatment of the referee by the crowd and players. It is good to see it being clamped down on. It looked ugly, and we should expect better from club captains. Again, the bottom line is, in sport decisions go against you, you need to cop it on the chin and move on, some days the rub of the green goes your way, and others it doesn't.

Quite the nightmare tipping round - I picked two winners, but just goes to show the form line early in the season is difficult to read. The Guardian had this beaut line: 'Storm beat the Warriors who beat the Raiders who beat the Sharks who beat the Roosters who beat the Raiders who beat Manly. The Tigers beat the Eels who beat Souths. The Cowboys beat the Panthers.'

Super Rugby
The Hurricanes are 7-0, which I still find staggering for a team whose general character is inconsistency. A win against NSW at home in their next match, will equal the best start in the competition's history, and will also be a club record.  Not that we're getting ahead of ourselves ;)

The other really great read over the week was this piece about All Black captain Richie McKaw.

On the horizon.. 
With the Cricket World Cup over, next attention moves to the Football World Cup (hard to believe the 2018 Qualifiers have started too), the Netball World Cup and the year finishes up with the Rugby World Cup...

World Cup wrap up..

Last night was the World Cup Final, and Australia were worthy winners of the game.  The three highlights to me.

(1) Starc's first over to McCullum, just brilliant bowling, and got the reward he deserved. It set the scene, rather than deciding the match.
(2) Smith's composure and calmness when he came out to bat.  Fitting he hit the winning runs.
(3) McCullum's grace and dignity in defeat. Seeing him chase each ball as if it was the first over, his post match speech and press conference, running to Clarke to shake his hand after he was dismissed, (along with a number of other NZ players). Just pure class.

The honorable mention, would be Clarke - on one level it was sad he wasn't there at the end, but at the same time, he got to walk off the ground to a standing ovation, which he deserved.

The low light, Channel 9's coverage.  How on earth did Shane Warne get the nod for the post match interviews, we learnt more about the players drinking habits than anything else, only Watson and Clarke were asked about their opponents. Disappointing that Mark Nicholas announced Dan's (rumored) retirement to the world while neglecting to mention Misbah-ul-Haq or Shahid Afridi.

Highlights of the World Cup:
(1) The tournament dominated by the bat - 4 scores of over 400, 2 double hundreds, 38 centuries... The average strike rate was in the high 80s.
(2) Admist that, two bowlers stood up above the others Trent Boult and Mitchell Starc. Fitting that Starc was player of the tournament.
(3) The two matches which will live in my memory and which highlight the beauty of cricket were the Afghanistan v Scotland game and the South Africa - New Zealand semi-final.

So proud of the NZ team.

'Footy's' back ...

We've been enjoying the Cricket, SuperXV Rubgy and the NRL for a few weeks now, but next weekend sees the beginning of the AFL Season..   In short, hoping for redemption this year. That is, if the Swans make the grand final, they show up for the game.

Here's my prediction for the top eight

1. Sydney 2. Port Adelaide 3. Hawthorn 4. Fremantle
5. Geelong 6. North Melbourne 7. Richmond .8 Adelaide

I think Sydney will play Hawthorn or Port Adelaide in the Grand Final. But there's a lot of water to go under the bridge before we get there.

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Super Rugby
Very impressed with the Hurricanes, a few All Blacks were rested last night and the team beat the Rebels 36-12, to go 6-0 for the season.

NRL
The two games last night were great advertisements for the game, with Parramatta upsetting the Rabbits, and the Bulldogs running down the Tigers with a golden point field goal.   One thing I've thought since it was introduced, is that it should be changed to a golden try. That's to say, if you score a try - game over, but with a field goal or penalty goal you play the ten minutes out.

Tomorrow, before the Cricket starts, the Warriors and Brisbane play in the NRL, before the game they will mark the fact that the Warriors have been in the competition for 20 years. Hoping for another win, to consolidate a reasonably good start to the season.

World Cup Cricket
The final sees the two best teams in the tournament playing for the right to be called World Champions. I am hopeful that the BlackCaps will lift the World Cup for the first time. I've been so impressed with McCullum and the team for the past year or so, not only for the cricket they have played, but the spirit they have played the cricket in. This piece from Martin Crowe is a must read. 

25 years in Australia

I have now lived in Australia for 25 years. It's not news to anyone, but the longer I've been in Australia, the attachment I feel towards New Zealand grows. That's not to say I don't like Australia, its just NZ is part of who I am. A lot of this piece echoes my sentiment, even if it is in places unnecessarily provocative.

So, this post is a little about NZ, a little about Australia, and the rivalry between. The recent world cup clash added another chapter.(and maybe a meeting in the final will too....)

What better place to start than with some of my lasting memories in Trans-Tasman sport.

Cricket

• Hadlee's 9/52 and Crowe's 188 (1985/86)
• Whitney & McDermott batting out most of the last hour against Hadlee in Melbourne (1987)
• Both McGrath & Warne's highest test scores came against NZ (Gillespie and McGrath put on 114 for the tenth wicket, McGrath made 61, 2004),
• Warne made 99 before he decided to offer catching practice in 2007.
• The 2007 Chappell-Hadlee trophy series - NZ chased over 340 twice (and won the series 3-0)
• Bracewell's 6/40 (and Warner's hundred) in Hobart. (2011)

Rugby Union

• George Gregan's tackle (1992), Mortlock's intercept or Carlos Spencer's pass, (2003), numerous last minute penalty goals or tries (by Burke, Kefu & Eales). Does anyone else remember Eales stopping a penalty before it went over the crossbar. 
• The All Blacks flawless 43-6 win in torrential rain (Wellington, 1996)
• Lomu's try after the siren in the first Rugby Union international at Homebush. The All Blacks won 35-31; and the test has been described as the best played.
• The one Bledisloe cup I saw at ANZ Stadium (won 50-21 by the All Blacks, 2003)
• The miracle in Brisbane last October.

Netball

• The closeness of the Netball results most tests are decided by a handful of goals, I can only remember two which were won by more than six goals. Both NZ and Australia have won in Extra-time.

A few other sporting memories (which don't involve Australia)

Cricket

• Most recently Guptil's 237* (highest score by a Kiwi; highest score in a World Cup Game, and the second time Guptil has batted all 50 overs in an ODI)
• Crowe's 299
• McCullum's 302
• Corey Anderson's 36 ball hundred (until earlier this year the fastest ever).
• It says something about the NZ team that in ODI Cricket, NZ have 3 entries in the top 10 highest successful chases.
• Crowe & Jones shared a 467 run partnership for the third wicket in 1991, 
• Watling shared in an unbroken stand of 365 with Williamson; and a 352 run stand with McCullum
• Ronchi & Elliot's 267 run stand for the 6th Wicket in the ODI against Sri Lanka earlier this year.
• As an aside Hastings and Collinge (1973) had the highest stand for the 10th Wicket until Agar & Hughes (165) and then Jimmy Anderson & Joe Root (198) both went past their stand of 151. 

Rugby

• At school watching the All Blacks game against Italy during the 1987 world cup
• The drop goal in 1995, the two French disasters; this song sums it all up
• Madly refreshing a phone during the last few minutes of the World Cup Final in 2011. 
• The miracle in Dublin (2013)

Rugby League

• Any win by the Kiwi's is one to cherish, given they are so rare (the World Cup win in 2008, the 24-0 win in 2005, and last year's Four Nations where they beat Australia twice) would be the highlights. :) 

Other sports... 

• The America's Cup Win (and retention) before the amazing loss in the 2013 series (they led 8-3 before losing 9-8.
• Can't forget the All Whites being the only undefeated team at the 2010 World Cup, despite leaving at the group stage. 
• The Breakers - who were the first team from NZ to win in an Australian competition, and earlier this month won their fourth tittle in the past five years.
• The Phoenix have done really well in the A-League and may not have a better chance to win the competition

++++

Cricket World Cup (Week 5)

Three games to go.... and the last four standing are Australia, India, New Zealand and South Africa.  There's a nice symmetry about the Semi-Finals - the most successful team Australia (4 titles) playing the defending champions India, and the challengers South Africa and New Zealand fighting for their first appearance in a World Cup Final.

World Cup Best XI
I'm making three changes - Guptill to replace Amla, Maxwell to replace Faulkner and Boult for Southee. Imran Tahir is unlucky, but I'm keeping Dan for his catch today ;)

1. B. McCullum (C) (NZL) 2. M Guptil (NZL) 3. K. Sangakkara (SL) 4. A.B. deVilliers (S Af) 5. V. Kohli (Ind)
6. G Maxwell (Aus) 7. M. Dhoni  (wk) (Ind) 8. D. Vettori (NZL) 9.  M Starc (Aus) 10. D. Steyn (S Afr) 11. T Boult (NZL)

First thoughts on the Semis
Australia v India: the World Cup means so much to the players & fans than all of the other games on the tour to date.  You have the feeling Australia will handle the pressure better than India...
New Zealand v South Africa: South Africa have been good, but not great in the tournament so far, with losses against India and Pakistan (and both chasing). The signs from the game against Sri Lanka were good for their bowling. A line ball call with NZ probably a nose in front...

Footy season?!?

While the AFL seasons starts in April, the Super Rugby Season started three weeks ago, and the NRL have just finished their first game with Souths defeating Brisbane.

I'm really looking forward to heading up to Newcastle on Saturday to watch the Warriors play the Knights in their first game of the season. The Warriors are usually slow starters to the season - though hopefully not this year.  In terms of predictions, I suspect the Warriors will make the eight, but how high depends on their consistency, and my tip would be for South Sydney (or Canterbury) to win the Grand Final.

On to the Super Rugby, surprised to say that the Hurricanes have won three from three and are at the top of the table, though it is early days at the moment. Consistency has been their struggle in previous years, so hopefully they have resolved that little battle. (They have a bye this weekend and play the Blues the following week)

Onto the AFL; despite their disappointing performance on Grand Final day, I would still put the Swan's in the mix for top four (maybe Grand Finalists). At this stage my pick is a Swans-Hawks grand final (with a Swan's win) .

The NZ Breakers have made the Grand Final series of the NBL comp, after finishing last a year ago.

The team of the World Cup (so far). For me the automatic picks at this stage are:

B. McCullum (NZ) (c) 
K Sangakkara (SL) (wk) 
A.B. de-Villiers (SAf)
D Vettori (NZ)  
M. Starc (Aus)
T Southee (NZ) 

12th Man: Shaiman Anwar Butt (UAE), currently the highest run scorer in the tournament. 

It is a toss up between Amla and Warner - and at the moment, I lean slightly to Amla, Steyn hasn't set the tournament alight yet, but you know he has that match winning performance in him.  Faulkner is a certainly a match winner, and by the end of the tournament, I suspect he would have done enough. Kohli's form in Australia has been electric so I'd include him. It is hard to find places for both Boult and Southee, maybe by the end of the tournament, it will be warranted. I'd pick Vettori as the spinner - he's been brilliant to date, his role against Australia was crucial to the result.

My World Cup XI
1. B. McCullum (C) (NZL) 2. H Amla (S Af ) 3. K. Sangakkara (SL) 4. A.B. deVilliers (S Af) 5. V. Kohli (Ind)
6. J. Faulkner (Aus) 7. M. Dhoni  (wk) (Ind) 8. D. Vettori (NZL) 9.  M Starc (Aus) 10. D. Steyn (S Afr) 11. T Southee (NZL) 

Concert Review: Roxette, Sydney Opera House steps

Last Wednesday night I went and saw Roxette play on the steps of the Sydney Opera House. I've always wanted to see a concert and Roxette had always been on my list of bands to see. Hearing some of these songs performed live, took me back to the 1990s. Boom Crash Opera played support, and I honestly didn't recognise the guitarist as he walked passed or any of the songs.

Per & Marie (and the band) were having so much fun on stage, and was great to see that the chemistry between them hasn't changed.  Per often seems like a young boy living his dream. 

The first thing that was clear from the beginning of the concert was Marie wasn't well. At times it didn't seem to matter and others, it was like she just couldn't quite hit the notes. I hadn't known this, but she had a brain-tumour removed, and sometimes suffers the effects of this. 

Main Set: Sleeping In My Car // The Big L. // Stars // Spending My Time // Crash! Boom! Bang! // Crush On You // She’s Got Nothing On (But The Radio) // Watercolours In The Rain / Paint // Fading Like A Flower // How Do You Do! // It Must Have Been Love // Dressed For Success // Dangerous-Waltzing Matilda // Joyride.
Encore: Listen To Your Heart // The Look.

A few of the things I loved about the concert. Maybe its cheesy, but the instrumental version of Waltzing Matilda played by the guitarist was pretty cool, (It wasn't Hendrix's Star Sprangled Banner, but fun nevertheless). Marie sang 'Spending My Time', which has always been one of my favourites, and one I would probably have been disappointed if they hadn't played. The other highlights were the crowd singing 'It Must have Been Love' (and stuffing up the words), the audience reaction to 'Joyride' and 'The Look', and I quite enjoyed hearing Per sang 'Crash! Boom! Bang!

All in all it was great fun night.

Cricket World Cup - Week Two...

Time to reflect on the tournament so far.  The two matches of the tournament for me, were the UAE v Ireland and the Afghanistan v Scotland games. Partly because given they're not traditional rivals, and they are players we have not seen, they add some much to the sport's history.

For this reason, it will be sad to see the Associate nations not in the next tournament. Partly because every game the 'associates' play is meaningful, the Associate v Associate games seem to be more competitive than the games between 'test-playing nations'.

So, on to the revised predictions:

Pool A: 
New Zealand, Australia, Sri Lanka; England, with games against Bangladesh and Afghanistan to come, will sneak in.

Pool B:
Pool B seems to be a little tighter. My tips would be:
India, South Africa, and then two from Ireland, West Indies and Zimbabwe. If Ireland beats Zimbabwe they should make the quarter-finals, but with games against South Africa & India you would imagine their net-run-rate will suffer.

A little on the Aus v NZ game:
I was surprised to read that before Saturday's game, NZ hadn't played Australia in a ODI since 2011 (in the last world cup). Especially since the Chappell-Hadlee trophy was established for ODI's between the two nations.

The Australia - New Zealand game was great, because it reminded you that cricket is a contest between bat and ball. In an age when the average run-rate is going up and the game seems stacked in favour of the batsman. I was really impressed with Vettori since he allowed to NZ to settle back down after Australia's excellent start.

The game highlighted the importance of good captaincy.  McCullum backed his bowlers and bowled Boult out. You wonder what the outcome would have been if Starc had been bowled out.

Looking forward:
The Bangledash v Scotland (Thu) & Ireland v Zimbabwe (Sun) games are the two I'm most looking forward to this week.  Bangledash need to keep winning to put pressure on England.

World Cup

So, we are two days (and almost four games) into the tournament. Was very impressed with NZ start. McCallum & Guptill's opening partnership of 111 (in 16 overs) would have settled the nerves.  Williamson wasn't at his best, and still made 50 odd, Daniel Vettori was impressive with the ball and Anderson didn't let the momentum change when he came out to bat.  Important to mention that in the game Sangakkara became the second highest scorer in ODI Cricket, moving past Ricky Ponting.

The BlackCaps play Scotland on Tuesday.

Australia started really well too. I felt for Taylor, given the circumstance of the ending of the game (He handled himself really well).

South Africa highlighted why they are among the favourites, with a brilliant partnership of 256 between Duminy and Miller guiding them from 4/83 to over 300.  The South African's scored 146 off the last 10 overs,

And in the game that just finished, India had too much for Pakistan. With Kohli making another hundred.

Tomorrow sees Ireland and the West Indies play, should be an interesting contest.

And while we are talking about Cricket, the White Ferns (the Women's team) had a 9 wicket win against England, taking a 2-1 series lead